A UNION boss today described the car crash death of a former boss who sacked 2,500 staff by text message as "a sad end to the life of a man who caused misery to others".

A UNION boss today described the car crash death of a former boss who sacked 2,500 staff by text message as "a sad end to the life of a man who caused misery to others".

TUC official Alec McFadden, spoke out after the death in Spain of multi-millionaire Mark Langford, the controversial ex-boss of a "no win no fee" accident claims group.

Mr McFadden, who represented the sacked workers, including some from Birmingham, said: "As a human being, I am sad that a man has died, but it's right to say that the people I represent had their lives turned upside down. Some of them ended up in poverty."

Foreign Office officials said Mr Langford, boss of personal injury insurance firm The Accident Group, died in a road accident in the Spanish resort of Marbella where he lived with his wife Deborah.

Mr Langford was the founder of the Manchester-based firm which spectacularly collapsed almost four years ago with debts of around #100 million.

As the company slid into receivership staff, including the 130-strong workforce at its Birmingham Waterlinks office in Aston, were told of their redundancy by text alert.

The business later went into liquidation but the downfall of the company brought a bitter aftermath with demands for retribution from angry employees.

Left with no redundancy payouts, staff in Birmingham seized their office computers to hold "hostage" in lieu of payment in scenes likened at the time to "the fall of Baghdad".

TAG's employees received no redundancy money and the company was liquidated in January 2004, although workers were able to secure payouts after a test case victory at an employment tribunal.